Device for defaecation and urination in throw-away bed-pans

ABSTRACT

Today bed-pans used in hospitals and the like have to be cleaned and disinfected after every use and furthermore the use of the same involves lifting of the patients. This invention relates to a throw-away bed-pan made of destructable material and combined with a lifting device adapted to facilitate the handling of the patient. The bed-pan also has means preventing the soiling of the bed and means for containing the used bed-pan.

United States Patent [1 1 Hoborn [4 Dec. 11, 1973 1 DEVICE FORDEFAECATION AND URINATION IN THROW-AWAY BED-PANS [76] Inventor: JanIngvar Hoborn, 77 Gamla Sarovagen, Askim, Sweden 22 Filed: May 1, 197221 Appl. No.: 249,178

[52] U.S. Cl. 4/112, 4/113 [51] llnt. Cl A6lg 9/00 [58] Field of Search..4/110, 1,111, 141,

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,418,663 12/1968 Scott..4/113 3,609,771 10/1971 Avoy 2,353,245 Kiser 4/112 UX 2,955,29410/1960 Silverstein 4/113 3,008,153 11/1961 Coulter 4/113 X 3,605,1289/1971 Oden et al. 4/113 Primary Examiner-Henry K. Artis Att0rneyl(arlW. Flocks [57] ABSTRACT Today bed-pans used in hospitals and the likehave to be cleaned and disinfected after every use and furthermore theuse of the same involves lifting of the patients. This invention relatesto a throw-away bed-pan made of destructable material and combined witha lifting device adapted to facilitate the handling of the patient. Thebed-pan also has means preventing the soiling of the bed and means forcontaining the used bed-pan.

5 Claims, 4 Drawing Figures DEVICE FOR DEFAECATION AND URINATION INTHROW-AWAY BED-PANS This inventionrelates to a device for defaecationand urination in throwaway bed-pans.

The primary object of this invention is to create a device fordefaecation and urination in throw-away bedpans, that answer thehygienic requirements in hospitals, with a view to eliminating all risksof contamination. In addition, such 'a device shall eliminate alldecontamination and disinfection'tr'eatment now called for in thehandling of bed-pans designed for reutilization.

Another object is to obtain such a device as to facilitate the hospitalwork to a considerable extent, whereby personnel may be available formore necessary and exacting works.

Yet another object is to bring about a purely physical relief in thedaily work of the personnel by not having to lift the patient every timehe wishes to defaecate or urinate, thus eliminating the risk of backaffections among the staff. 1

When looking into the routines of nursing, from the hygienic point ofview,-attention has lately been focussed apart from on sterility ofinstruments and equipment used on the handling of objects that have beenin contact with the patient, or pus, faeces or urine from the patient.

Defaecation, urination and the handling of faeces are now done in theconventional way with bed-pans and- /or urine bottles forre-utilization, which have to be cleaned and disinfected after everyuse. Transport, cleaning, disinfection and storing of re-utilizebed-pans involve considerable risks of spreading contagion within thewards, and therefore it is essential that such risks should beeliminated.

The work mentioned above, with conventional reutilize bed-pans, requiresa lot of man-hours if it should be properly attended to from thehygienical point of view, and this can be directly converted into moneyas well as into insufficientnursing of the patients in other respects.

From the patients view it may be said that the bedpans now in use of there-utilization type do not in any way represent'a comfortablesolution'of the problem with defaecation in'the bed. Furthermore, thereare considerable difficulties in connection with patients who cannot forvarious reasons be turned and are forced to use bed-pans of theconventional type, because the patient has to be rolled in the bed toplace the bed-pan in position.

All these drawbacks have now quite sursprisingly been eliminated thanksto this invention, whose main characteristic is a device to lift andkeep the patients hip region at a somewhat elevated level, a bed-panmade of a destructable material, and a urine conducting cushion securedto the bed-pan, and a plastic bag secured to the bed-pan, arranged sothat the cushion and the plastic bag cover the patients genitals duringevacuation and/or urination, the plastic bag being arranged to be turnedinside out over the bed-pan after finishing defaecation and/orurination.

According to a preferred embodiment, a plastic slip is secured to thebed-pan, whereby the urine conducting cushion is firmly attached to thebed-pan along one of its sides via this slip. The plastic slip is placedbetween the cushion and the plastic bag, and-so arranged as to cover thepatients groin region during defaecation and urination-and thereafter tocover the bed-pan during the subsequent turning inside out of theplastic bag.

According to another, suitable embodiment, the bedpan is provided with aprotruding flange to be pushed in under the patient and bekept in placebetween the patient and the bedding.

According to yet another embodiment, the device for lifting and keepingthe patients hip region in elevated position is constituted of aninflatable cushion, consisting of a central and, when inflated,essentially cylindrical body, the two ends of which carry twotransversal parts arranged centrally to the body.

The invention will now be secribed in more detail, reference being madeto the accompanying drawings which illustrate a device for carrying themethod into effect.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 shows one embodiment of the device to keep the patients hips inelevated position, seen from above;

FIG. 2 shows one embodiment of the bed-pan seen from the side; I

FIG. 3 shows the bed-pan from above;

FIG. 4 shows the device according to this invention, applied to apatient.

In the drawings, 1 indicates an inflatable cushion made of plasticmaterial and consisting of a central body 2 which, when inflated, hasthe shape of a cylinder, to the two ends of which are arrangedtransversal inflatable portions 3 and 4. To the portions 3 and 4, slips5a and 5b are secured to the side facing from the body 2. A channel forinflation of the cushion l is arranged through the slip 5a. The body 2is intended to be placed under the patients lumbar region, across thelongitudinal axis, and the portions 3 and 4 are intended to run alongthe patients sides to stabilize and prevent his turning round thelongitudinal axis.

A bed-pan 7 made of an easily destructable material, such as hydrophobicpulp, presents a bowl-shaped portion 8, the edge of which has a brim 9.The brim is on one side of the bed-pan 7 extended so as to form a collarl0 and is bent downwardly on the side opposite to the collar 10, forreasons given below. Furthermore, a plastic bag 11 is firmly secured,preferably by glueing orheat sealing, to the side of the bed-pan 7opposite to the collar 10, and preferably to the upper side of the brim9 or to the upper, inner edge of the bowl-shaped portion 8. In addition,a plastic slip 12 is firmly secured to the bed-pan 7, preferably also byheat sealing, and preferably to the already mentioned plastic bag, theslip 12 preferably being affixed to the side of the bed-pan 7 oppositeto the collar 10, either on the brim 9 or on the inside of the bowl 8'-r A urine-conducting, preferably high-absorbent cushion 13 formed as adiaper, is secured to the bed-pan 7,

by glueing or heat sealing, on the side opposite to the collar 10, i.e.,in the same place as the slip l2 and the plastic bag 11. The cushion 13is preferably secured to the plastic slip 12 along one of its end sidesto allow an increased mobility.

The device according to this invention is to be used in the followingmanner:

The inflatable cushion l, which beforehand has been placed under apatient and localized transversally by means of the slips 5a and 5b, theouter edges of which are at such a distance from each other that theylie along the longitudinal sides of the bed is inflated through thechannel 6 by air or some other suitable gas from a pump or pressuresource. Thereby, the hip region of the patient is lifted so much thatthe bed-pan 7 can be slided in under the patient without tilting ithorizontally; the collar 10 is then to be placed under the small of thepatients back and between it and the body 2 of the plastic cushion l,which cushion preferably is covered with a sheet. In this way, thebed-pan 7 is kept in position under the patient.

The urine-conducting cushion l3 and the slip 12 is then folded over tocovering the genitals of the patient and also his groins. After that theplastic bag 11 is folded over the patients groins region whereupon thepatient preferably seizes the free corner of the plastic bag 11 to keepthe cushion 13 and the slip 12 in position. During urination, thecushion 13 will absorb and conduct the urine downwardly into the bed-panand there will be no risk of the urine flowing outside and moisteningthe surroundings.

The bed-pan 7 takes up all faeces without any risk of contamination ofthe bed outfit.

After finishing defaecation and urination, the bedpan 7 is slightlypulled backwardly, the plastic bag 11 and the slip 12 are folded towardsthe foot end of the bed and the urine conductor is folded down into thebed-pan bowl 8. The tissues, napkins or like used for cleaning thepatient are also placed in the bed-pan bowl 8 after use. After that, theslip 12 is folded over the bed-pan and the attendant places his hand inthe plastic bag 11 and seizes the bentdown part of the brim 9 and pullsthe bed-pan 7 into the plastic bag 11, at the same time turning the baginside out: the bed-pan 7, the slip l2 and the cushion l3, and allfaeces and dirty tissues are entirely enclosed in the bag 11. The bag isthen sealed in a suitable way. Finally, the plastic cushion l is emptiedof air and the patient is replaced on his bed.

The risks of contamination have thus been eliminated and the problem inconnection with cleaning and disinfection has also been eliminated. Thedevice according to this invention furthermore involves additionaladvantages thanks to the fact that it requires less storing space thanthe conventional steel bed-pans, and the bed-pan bowls may be shaped forstacking, which is not the case with todays steel bed-pans, and that itis considerably lighter than the usual bed-pan.

' Thanks to the arrangement of the inflatable cushion under the lumbarregion of the patient, which cushion lifts the patients hip region whenit is inflated and keeps it in that position, the manual lifting of thepatient, which is else required every time a bed-pan shall be placedunder a patient, is eliminated. This will save the backs of the nursingstaff to a very large extent.

The above mentioned bed-pan may also be made collapsible to reduce thespace required still more.

I claim:

1. Device for defaecation and urination in throwaway bed-pancharacterized by a device to lift and keep a patients hip region inelevated position, a bed-pan made of a disposable or a destructiblematerial, and a urine conducting, preferably absorbing, cushioned diapersecured to said bed-pan, and an inverted plastic bag having a mouth anda bottom secured to the bed-pan and its bottom, wherein the urineconducting cushioned diaper and the inverted plastic bag are so arrangedas to cover the patients genitals during defaecation and/or urination,and wherein the plastic bag is arranged for turning inside out over thebed-pan after finishing defaecation and/or urination.

2. Device according to claim 1 in which, the bed-pan is provided with acollar intended to be placed below the patients lumbar region betweenhim and the bedding to position the bed-pan to the patient.

3. Device according to claim 1, in which, the device for lifting andkeeping the patients hip region in elevated position, consists of aninflatable cushion.

4. Device according to claim 3, in which, the inflatable cushion isconstituted of a central, when inflated essentially cylindrical body, tothe two ends of which are fastened two transversal portions, centrallylocalized relatively to the body.

5. Device according to claim 1, in which a plastic foil slip is securedto the bed-pan in-between the urine conducting diaper and plastic bag.

1. Device for defaecation and urination in throw-away bed-pancharacterized by a device to lift and keep a patient''s hip region inelevated position, a bed-pan made of a disposable or a destructiblematerial, and a urine conducting, preferably absorbing, cushioned diapersecured to said bed-pan, and an inverted plastic bag having a mouth anda bottom secured to the bed-pan and its bottom, wherein the urineconducting cushioned diaper and the inverted plastic bag are so arrangedas to cover the patient''s genitals during defaecation and/or urination,and wherein the plastic bag is arranged for turning inside out over thebed-pan after finishing defaecation and/or urination.
 2. Deviceaccording to claim 1 in which, the bed-pan is provided with a collarintended to be placed below the patient''s lumbar region between him andthe bedding to position the bed-pan to the patient.
 3. Device accordingto claim 1, in which, the device for lifting and keeping the patient''ship region in elevated position, consists of an inflatable cushion. 4.Device according to claim 3, in which, the inflatable cushion isconstituted of a central, when inflated essentially cylindrical body, tothe two ends of which are fastened two transversal portions, centrallylocalized relatively to the body.
 5. Device according to claim 1, inwhich a plastic foil slip is secured to the bed-pan in-between the urineconducting diaper and plastic bag.